Dreary weather and a home game turns the surfside suburb of Cronulla into a ghost town.

Not that I’m complaining as I cosy up to a gloriously Autumnal bowl of Fettuccine, Pine Mushrooms, Smoked Quail and Almonds ($28).

When you add a glass or two of toasty oak in the form of a 2009 Lethbridge Chardonnay ($16/glass), I’m sorely tempted to kick off my shoes, curl up by a fireplace and purr like a kitten.

Yep, Mario Kalpou has hit the nail on the head with this one; and I thought that even before my vegetarian dining companion ordered three courses of cheese. She began with the Grilled Toma ($14), a generous lil’ wheel set off by grapes, walnuts and witlof...

My Black Pudding with Cauliflower Custard, Apple and Fennel ($22) was a quivering virginal bosom by comparison to the former dish’s voluptuous enthral.

Both were quickly forgotten when this restaurant solved my eternal dilemma – dessert or cheese – with a Chocolate and Gorgonzola Budino ($16).

It’s a dish best consumed in private, with a tumbler of Antica Formula ($10) and your best bedroom eyes.

PS. My photos tell me we did try another dessert, but who cares what it's called when there's a dessert that combines chocolate and cheese! Okay it was a Custard Apple Panna Cotta with Rhubarb and Hazelnut Praline ($16) and I couldn't see if it quivered because it was served (quite aesthetically) in a jar.